With all the natural disasters occuring lately, I thought it would be a great week to remind you that if you haven't put together a 72 hour kit, then you should definitely get on that!
If you have put together a 72 hour kit, it would be a good time to make sure it still matches your needs and that nothing is expired!

In other news, I'm going to take a few weeks off of the "How Do I Use It?" segment, while I do some more research on the next few items. In the mean time, I'll be covering some more emergency prep subjects.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Cooking spray is a wonderful thing that makes for less work in cleaning up, but also has less calories than butter, oil, or shortening that you could use. However, that cooking spray can also be a handy helper in other ways. Check out the list below for more helpful ideas.

Grating Cheese. It takes less work to grate (and makes the grater easier to clean) if you spray it with cooking oil first.

Preventing tomato stains on your tupperware. Spray the container first to prevent stains.

Debugging your car. Spray the grille with cooking spray and wipe.

Lubricate a bicycle chain.

Lubricate the hinge on a door.

Remove paint and grease from your hands by coating it with cooking spray and then work it in. Wash again with soap and water.

Friday, March 25, 2011

A friend on facebook posted this website the other day, and it has given me a bunch of good laughs. It is called {Bleep} My Kids Ruined. It's so funny because if you have kids you've been there, and sometimes you just sit there and go "if I didn't see this with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe it." So go check it out and have a laugh. I also enjoy their sister site {Bleep} My Pets Ruined. *Warning* There are times that there may be questionable material on these sites, as they are user submitted. Also, while they bleep out the name on the website, the address contains a less than favorable word. Just a word of caution because I always like a warning.

In other news, you might have noticed the lack of posts this week. It's been pretty hectic here. I promise next week will be better. :-)

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Dental floss has a lot of surprising uses because it is quite durable! Of course the best use for dental floss is cleaning those pearly whites, and avoiding huge expenses at the dentist. Since it is one of those things that goes on sale often, and you can get it free, I figured I'd give you a few uses for it!

Cutting cheese or cakes (or cheesecakes). Works like a charm, just make sure it isn't flavored!

Secure a button. Great substitute for thread. Also great if you have a button that is always breaking because floss is stronger than thread.

Lift cookies off a tray. Hold it taut, and slide it under the cookies.

Remove a ring stuck on your finger. Wrap your finger in dental floss from the ring to the nail, then slide the ring off over it.

Separate photos. Photos sometimes get stuck together, so instead of ruining them ripping them apart, try working floss between them.

Hang pictures with it.

Wrap the ends of ropes with floss to keep them from fraying.

Use the mint kind to tie back garland at Christmas,

Clean tools, works well in the small crevices.

Make parachutes for army men with papertowels and floss.

Replacement strand for a necklace.

String popcorn for garland

Make a clothesline in the bathroom for swimsuits.

If you have any ideas, share them below and I will add them to the list!

Friday, March 18, 2011

As I've mentioned before, my faith is an important part of me, and an important reason for my blog. Unfortunately, my faith is also one that isn't understood very well by many, and often the target of rumors and sometimes even persecution. My church has recently rolled out a new program allowing everyday people of our church to create profiles about who they are, and why they follow this faith. I hope you will check it out, and check out some others while you are there. (Sorry for any grammar issues, it takes a few days between updating something and it being published that way on the website.)

I've only just begun getting into working the drug store deals, in fact I've only dabbled into CVS.

But it really is a great way to stock up on personal care items, so I thought I would share with you how it works.

Basically, each week the drug stores offer some form of money back for making a purchase. Generally, you break up what you would buy into several little purchases rolling over the money back to the next purchase, allowing you to save money out-of-pocket. Any extra after buying all you wish to buy you roll over to the next week. It does take a little more time then regular grocery store couponing, but it really helps cut down on the budget for those personal products.

My best advice though is to check-out Southern Savers. In the top right of the website you will find all the drug stores. She usually is pretty good about posting a getting started scenario for each one. She also has information on how it works, policies, and tips. So check it out, and be on your way to saving even more money.

Which type?﻿ For long term storage you want old-fashioned, quick, or steel-cut oats, not instant. Most instant oatmeals have some sort of mix-in or other ingredients that can make the shelf-life shorter.

Liquid- Unless you are making cookies or other baked goads, you'll need some liquid.

That's really all there are for special concerns. Oats are a pretty awesome thing to store.

Friday, March 11, 2011

With the price of gas the way it is, one of the best ways to save money is to plan your errands. The best thing is to do as many as you can in one stretch, and plan the most effective route. That way you aren't driving to one side of town and back, or to home and back out several times.

When it comes to oats, cooking is relatively simple. You may not even need too, depending on what you are making. I'm going to assume (correct me if I'm wrong) you know how to cook instant oats (the ones that come in the packets) and focus on old-fashioned and quick oats.

First we are going to focus on using them for oatmeal:

Old-fashioned: The first thing to remember is a 2-1 ratio of liquid to oats. To cook boil liquid (milk or water) and a dash of salt. Stir in oats. Cook for 5 minute over medium heat, stirring occasionally.

Quick Oats: The only difference for quick oat is you only cook for 1 minute instead of 5.﻿

When it comes to baking Quick and Old-Fashioned can be used interchangeably. Some people prefer to toast the oats before use, but you don't have to. It's really a personal preference.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

I know you just read the title and thought, "Is she crazy?" I'd probably think the same thing, but let me explain. We use a lot of water in our daily activities. Washing dishes and clothes, bathing, cooking, and yes using the toilet, and I bet most of that water just goes right down the drain. While reading a book, the author mentioned reusing some of these "dirty" waters in other ways. I thought to myself, "well why not?" Check-out some of these tips to see where you could cut back on water usage.

Do you have a fish tank? Have you ever changed the water in it and just dumped it down the drain? If you have a garden or just landscaping, pour it there, plants love the minerals from fish waste, and you save on watering and fertilizer.

Did you just boil potatoes? Typically you just pour it down the drain, but did you know that potato water can be a great silver polish? More ideas for potato water here. Many of these work for pasta too!

Did you steam some veggies? You can use the water from that in other components of your dish to add those nutrients to it.

Washing money down the drain during a shower? You could fit your house with a system that uses that water to fill your toilet. Sounds kind of cool because honestly who needs fresh tap water to pee in?

Just had a sink of dish water from washing dishes. Put some in a spray bottle and spray plants in your garden. Bugs hate dish soap.

Rain water. I live in Florida, and we are about to hit rainy season really soon. A rain barrel can be a great way to water your plants and lawn when it isn't raining. They also come in lots of decorative options that blend in with your landscaping.

Water left in your water bottle at the end of the day? I tend to put this in the dogs dish. Why pour it down the drain when it is still good? I just want to clean the container, and they need water. For what it's worth if I drop ice on the ground when getting some I also put that in their dish.

There are tons of safe ways to reuse water. You just have to use your imagination. I might add these tips are also useful in case of an emergency when water may be scarce.